San Rafael is leading a three-county effort to cooperatively purchase renewable energy and plans to install solar panels on six city buildings.

City Council members voted this week to allow the city manager and city attorney to enter into power purchase agreements with the San Rafael-based SolEd Benefit Corporation. SolEd, a renewable energy finance company, is slated to place photovoltaic panels on City Hall, the Department of Public Works building on Morphew Street, the Albert J. Boro Community Center, the San Rafael Community Center, the parking garage on C Street and the Terra Linda Community Center.

Rebecca Woodbury, city management analyst, said SolEd will own and maintain the solar equipment and charge the city for the energy used through the system. The 20-year power purchase agreements will be specific to each site.

"We'll be working our way through the contracts now," Woodbury said. "It's hard to tell when we're going to see the first solar panel, but hopefully next year."

Woodbury said there are no upfront capital costs associated with installing the panels, but the city will need to do some tree-trimming and roof work before many of the panels can be mounted. The city has opted to essentially lease the systems instead of purchasing them in an effort to save on equipment costs.

"We have other capital improvement projects where we could use our limited resources," Woodbury said.

It's estimated the city will save about $1.4 million in energy costs over the course of the 20-year agreements. The city would pay about $6.6 million for energy at those sites during the two-decade period, which includes a small residual bill with Pacific Gas and Electric Co.

It's possible the city could save even more money if some of the other cities and agencies that participated in the cooperative purchasing effort ink agreements with SolEd.

Corte Madera resident David Kunhardt, a CEO with SolEd, said the company is working with eight other agencies — including ones in Mill Valley and Novato — to install a total of about 4 megawatts of new photovoltaic capacity. Once a certain capacity is reached, each participating agency could receive a 10 percent discount.

"I congratulate the city for proceeding on a route to get various public agencies a deal," Kunhardt said.

In March 2013, the city signed an agreement with San Rafael-based Strategic Energy Innovations, a nonprofit that helps communities achieve their sustainability goals, to head an effort to cooperatively bring public solar energy projects to Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties.

In collaboration with the Santa Clara-based Optony Inc. solar consulting firm, Strategic Energy Innovations helped pay for the work needed to solicit bids from solar developers using its state-funded Sustainable Energy and Economic Development fund. The two agencies used a grant from the California Solar Initiative to create the fund, which allows public agencies to explore group purchasing of solar power without paying for site assessments and planning activities.

In exchange for being the lead agency for the three counties, San Rafael doesn't have to pay the 1.5 to 2 percent reimbursement fee participating agencies must pay back to the fund on the total value of each solar project. Additionally, the Marin Energy Authority, a nonprofit agency that administers the Marin Clean Energy program, was paid $7,000 to help the city review procurement documents and select a solar firm.

City Councilman Damon Connolly, chairman of the city's sustainability committee and chairman of Marin Clean Energy, said he's proud of San Rafael's leadership role in negotiating the energy lease agreements.

"This project represents significant environmental and economic benefits to the city and other participating communities," Connolly said.

City Hall will likely be the first building to receive solar panels. Once all the city buildings have been hooked up, 57 percent of the city's electricity use for buildings will come from solar power and greenhouse gas emissions will decline by 18 percent.

Bill Carney, president of Sustainable San Rafael, said that's good news for the environment.

"We're talking about 586 tons of greenhouse gas emissions that will be eliminated (annually) by having a clean, renewable energy source," Carney said.